Campus Life recently sponsored a DUI Simulator to be on campus to show students first-hand what it would be like if they were driving while intoxicated. Here is how it works: Someone sits in an actual car and puts on some head gear that is connected to a computer and sensors. Once inside, the participant uses the steering wheel, gas and break pedals during the simulation. Various environments can be selected for the simulation, such as driving in the city, on an open road, by the mountains or in a small town. While their goal is to maintain posted speed limits and drive normally, participants soon discover that it is difficult to keep the car driving in a straight line.

Students who participated in the simulation drove an average of one and a half minutes before they wrecked the car.  After the wreck occurred, they were given the consequences of their actions. For instance, one student would have received a ticket for driving on the wrong side of the road and a DUI citation.  Even worse, the student would have gone to jail for manslaughter because he hit and killed a person while driving.

As students were awaiting their turns with the simulator, they could watch a video of real drunk-driving stories.  It showed one 15-year-old who got drunk with some friends, wrecked his car and ended up in a hospital in a vegetative state.  The consequences were obviously severe for both the 15-year-old and his family.  By bringing the simulator to campus, Avila hopes to pass on a message that every student takes to heart--“Be Legal and Don’t Drink and Drive.”

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Avila University is a private, co-educational, values-based liberal arts institution founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, offering undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree programs. Avila University is located at 119th and Wornall Rd in southwest suburban Kansas City, Mo.